Project overview
Our project team is very grateful for this amazing opportunity to collaborate with schools from different European countries and is proud of our achievements. We believe that both participating students and teachers have learned a lot thanks to the project.
Students took part in a wide range of motivating challenges which required creativity, communication, team work, problem solving, using ICT and different types of evaluation. It was very rewarding for us, teachers, to see our students developing their 21st century skills while enjoying activities with foreign friends, responsibly hosting their peers and being hosted abroad. They made a lot of new friends from different countries and learned about other cultures. They have significantly improved their skills, built their self-confidence and increased their motivation. As well as this, they experienced the importance of English thanks to collaborating in international teams, staying in hosting families and enjoying different activities with international friends.
As for teachers, being part of an international team of enthusiastic teachers has been very enriching. We have developed our competences, modernized our teaching and learned how to integrate modern approaches. We have learned about European systems of education and enriched each other thanks to sharing examples of good practice. We believe that the project has helped to increase the quality of education at our schools. As well as this, communicating in English has helped to improve our language skills. It should also be noted that the project has increased our motivation and brought more satisfaction in our daily work. Very often teachers work on their own. However, collaborating in school teams as well as international teams has meaningfully helped to further developed collaboration on both levels.
In addition, we believe that the project has enriched local communities and inspired a wider audience. We have organised a wide range of dissemination activities and we hope that our effort has helped to show the power of people from different countries collaborating, to promote understanding among nations and motivate people from different areas to take part in similar international activities.
Below you see an overview of the most important project activities.
1) Designing project logos in October 2015
Students from each participating school designed project logos.
2) Project meeting in the Czech Republic in November 2015
Two teachers from each participating school took part in the first project meeting in the Town of Borohrádek, the Czech Republic, held from 16th to 18th November 2015.
Our team discussed project activities, tasks for each school, project timetable, details concerning developing a handbook for teachers or the use of ICT.
Besides, our project logo was chosen from a large number of designs created by students from each participating school. As well as this, teachers from abroad looked around the school and met local students.
Thanks to this meeting, we could plan our activities in detail and in addition, we prepared some further interesting challenges and activities both for students and teachers.
3) Students started working on challenges and communicating on-line with foreign students. Teachers started developing the handbook European Teachers in Action
4) Interactive European Pathway
Before the learning activity in the Czech Republic, students and teachers learned how to create videos and use Augmented Reality app Aurasma. Schools created videos presenting their countries and posters with trigger images and information about the country.
Created outcomes were presented during the learning activity. A school corridor was decorated with the posters. When visitors with smartphones, tablets etc. scan a trigger image in the poster, a video is played on the screen of their devices.
International groups inspected the interactive posters, shared opinions and evaluated the products. Interactive quizzes concerning European countries were created as well.
These pathways were made in all participating schools (and outside schools too). As one of our aims was to inspire other teachers and schools, we invited other European schools to join this project. We set up an eTwinning project Interactive European Pathway which we find very successful. 31 schools from different European countries completed the poster and video. The pathways were set up in many European countries.
Video introducing the project Interactive European Pathway
YouTube channel Interactive European Pathway
Posters are part of the book Let’s Discover
5) Learning Activity in the Czech Republic in April 2016
The learning activity in the Czech Republic was held from 11th to 15th April 2016. The guests visited the hosting school, watched the opening ceremony, students played ice-breaker games and took part in various challenges and competitions in international teams.
One of the main outcomes of the learning activity in the Czech Republic was creating Interactive European Pathway using posters, videos, QR codes and Augmented Reality. Each participating school created a video and a poster about its homeland. As one of our goals is to inspire teachers throughout Europe to modernize ways of teaching and learning, we agreed on involving schools from other countries in this activity. Thanks to connecting our project and eTwinning, schools from 31 countries created a poster and video representing their homeland. The Czech school connected posters and videos via QR codes and Augmented Reality app Aurasma before the meeting in the Czech Republic. The first Interactive European Pathway was installed in the Czech school, but each participating school has access to all the posters, videos and other related materials (such as quizzes based on the posters and videos.)
In order to promote the project and European values, understanding among different nations and involve local community, teachers, hosting families as well as local authorities, the international evening was held during the meeting. In addition, in the framework of the project activities, foreign guests visited some places of interest (Photo competition, Challenge Record, Write, Publish). Evaluation and feedback forms were used and absolute majority of participants (students, hosting families, teachers) evaluated the activity in a very positive way. Besides, the project coordinators discussed the project and the upcoming activities.
6) Learning how to create T-shirt designs
Before the learning activity in Poland, students learned how to create T-shirt designs.
7) Learning activity in Poland in June 2016
It was planned that the second learning activity would take place in June 2016 in Ankara, Turkey. However, because of the terrorist attacks in Ankara, the activity had to be cancelled. The team agreed on organizing the learning activity in Poland instead.
Despite the fact that the Polish school did not have as much time for the preparation, the Polish teachers did their best and managed to organize everything perfectly. Before the meeting, the students taking part in the meeting exchanged letters about themselves and started communicating on-line. Each participating school dealt with creating T-shirt designs in order to be prepared for the meeting in Poland.
The meeting in Poland was held from 13th to 17th June 2016. During the meeting, the guests visited the Polish school, watched the Opening Ceremony Poland in a Nutshell, international teams of students took part in a wide range of challenges including designing T-shirts, film making, playing basketball, bowling, cheerleader workshop, cooking challenge and treasure hunt. The guests learned more about Polish school system, local culture and traditions. The Polish school organized International Evening, which was attended by all participants and hosting families. As well as this, the project team discussed project activities, evaluated them and planned the upcoming activities and updated the project timetable. The learning activity was evaluated by students, teachers and hosting families and absolute majority evaluated it very positively.
8) Music posters before the learning activity in Portugal
Students created interactive e-posters using Glogster in order to introduce their attitude to music.
9) Learning Activity in Portugal in September 2016
The meeting in Portugal was held from 26th to 30th September 2016. Students from five countries worked in international teams on a wide range of activities such as creating musical instruments out of recycled materials and setting poems from each country to music and recording it, coding, robotics, using Maths to do card tricks, participating in a QR codes scavenger hunt, sports competitions, playing board games or attending a lecture on astronomy. Again, the feedback was very positive and the activities for international groups led to achieving the objectives.
10) Videos about participating schools
Before the learning activity in the Czech Republic students created videos about their schools that were presented and discussed in the Czech Republic.
The videos are part of the book Let’s Discover
11) Learning activity in the Czech Republic in April 2017
It was planned that the second learning activity would take place in June 2016 in Ankara, Turkey. However, because of the terrorist attacks in Ankara, the activity had to be cancelled. The team agreed on organizing the learning activity in Poland in 2016 instead of 2017. And the planned meeting in Poland in 2017 was replaced by another meeting in the Czech Republic in 2017.
The meeting in the Czech Republic was held from 24th to 28th April 2017. Students working in international teams took part in various challenges and tasks. Students observed an opening ceremony, played ice breaker games, watched videos introducing each school, which were prepared before the learning acitivity. Videos and facts about schools were discussed and compared. After that, international teams created presentations about School of the future and presented their ideas to the others. Groups also set up their own training company produicing T-shirts. Each team agreed on their company name, target group and slogan, made three T-shirt designs that were transfered on T-shirts, created video adverts and presented their work to others. Aa well as this, Besides, they participated in other challenges such as sports tasks and Invisible Exhibition in Prague.
12) Videos about participants’ hometowns
Before the learning activity in Croatia, students created videos about their hometowns that were presented and discussed in Croatia during International Children Film Festival in Šibenik.
The videos are part of the book Let’s Discover
13) Learning activity in Croatia in June 2017
The learning activity in Sibenik, Croatia was held from 18th to 23rd June 2017. Students from five countries worked in international teams on a wide range of activities. They took part in the 57th International Children's Film Festival which took place in Sibenik. During film workshops, students learned how film making works and created their own animations. Besides, they worked on other challenges such as making small boats and sports challenges as well as played different team games.
14) Publishing the book Let’s Discover
The book Let's Discover (Videos created by students taking part in the projects Challenge as a Modern Pedagogical Tool and Interactive European Pathway) was published on the project website. The videos can be watched by clicking on pictures or by scanning QR codes when using a printed version. Besides, Augmented Reality app Aurasma can be used to watch videos created for the project Interactive European Pathway.
15) Publishing the book European Teachers in Action
One of the main project aims was to inspire, motivate and enrich educators throughout Europe. Therefore, teachers taking part in this project shared their experience and ideas in a handbook called European Teachers in Action.
16) Presenting the project outcomes on-line
In order to inspire as many educators, we have shared important information about our project and all important outcomes on-line.
Michal Přibyl | 27.08.2017 at 10:25
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